Apple names Chicago's Belly as partner in business services

Chicago-based Belly, whose iPad-centered customer-loyalty program has worked its way onto the checkout counters of thousands of 7-Elevens and small businesses, is looking to the next step in its relationship with Apple to drive growth.

Four-year-old Belly joins industry leaders IBM, Box, DocuSign and others in Apple’s arsenal of recommended apps for business, the company said Tuesday.

Under the new relationship, Apple will funnel business-to-business sales leads to Belly, which should drive sign-ups for Belly’s merchant tools, LaHive said.

“It really does position us for a new phase of growth,” he said.

He declined to comment on the financial relationship between the companies.

The partnership is the latest development in Belly’s plans to sell its services to large businesses. After first aiming to replace the paper punch card for frequent shoppers at small businesses, Belly now wants to give bigger merchants a way to reach and reward their most loyal customers.

In 2014, Belly went live in more than 2,000 7-Eleven stores across the U.S. and in Canada. That deal came a year after the convenience chain’s investment subsidiary, 7-Ventures, participated in Belly’s $12.1 million Series B round.

Today, Belly has 6 million members and 11,000 merchants nationwide, making it the largest provider of digital loyalty services, LaHive said. It is backed by $25 million in funding from major investors, including Silicon Valley heavyweight Andreessen Horowitz, New Enterprise Associates and Chicago-based Lightbank, founded by Brad Keywell⇒ and Eric Lefkofsky⇒. Lightbank hired LaHive as a founder-in-residence in 2011 to build the loyalty company.

LaHive declined to provide details about how Apple would promote Belly, including whether a Belly app would potentially be promoted in the App Store or pre-loaded on Apple devices.

Apple declined to comment on details of the partnership.

The tech giant is expanding its outreach to businesses as consumer interest in the tablet wanes. iPad sales fell 18 percent year-over-year, the company revealed in its recent third-quarter earnings report.

In mid-2014, Apple entered into a partnership with IBM to develop business-focused apps for use on Apple devices. That initiative has since expanded, with Belly joining more than 40 companies Apple is branding as business-to-business partners.